This week, Nike officially revealed its first “native web3 sneaker” through its NFT / web3 affiliate, RTFKT, despite some setbacks. Now, as the market leader in sneakers continues to spend in developing its infrastructure in domains relating to emerging technologies and web3, it is demonstrating that the audience is rigid… and worldwide.
Since Nike has only allowed U.S.-based addresses to fulfill orders for its web3 sneakers, the biggest drawback regarding its release has much less to do with price and much more to do with accessibility. Let’s look at everything you need to know about Nike’s latest offering and the reactions to it.
Among companies who entered the NFT industry with a longer time perspective, Nike’s acquisition of RTFKT last year has primarily functioned as the most successful case study from a traditional brand using an NFT platform.
In the thick of the NFT bull market’s mania, the transaction happened a year ago. After the acquisition, the company introduced its own specific web3 platform. Swoosh demonstrated a continued commitment to playing in the web3 sandbox last month.
RTFKT appears to have been largely left to run initiatives on its own accord by Nike from the outside looking in, but overall it has been a huge success. When it comes to NFT engagement strategy, Nike is by far the leader among big box brands, as we discussed in August. No one has even come close to challenging Nike in recent months.
The discussion concludes with a crucial line, “Due to advanced tech and product regulation, merchandise can ONLY be transported to US,” yet it has generated a lot of controversy. A lot of criticism has been leveled at another brand with web3 visions and web2 execution due to the lack of clarity and lack of forethought in holding off on disclosing this important data until after outside U.S. money has been committed to the project. MONOLITH sales today are now being recorded for less than 0.5 ETH, down significantly from recent averages north of 1.5 ETH.
The feedback-responses around this point only serve to emphasize how universal cryptocurrency is. Big-brand companies still have to wade through the muck to complete tasks properly.
